Crate Diggin': The Records That Have Informed October's Sound To Date

October is a guy who we've taken a pretty fervent interest here in the fabric office. As a DJ he's been playing here for some years now and, part of the reason he keeps getting asked back is that he always manages to pick out a bunch of compelling upbeat selections but as a producer he's long shown he has a sound and approach that is constantly moving and evolving. When the demo for his record Black Body Radiation first dropped into our collective inbox around about a year ago the toughened, fortified EBM and post punk sound immediately hit us, square in the chops - in a good way. Scroll forward to a year or so later and we're more than happy that he'll be returning to EC1 and joining Skudge, aka the guys who put his album out in Room Two. We've spoken to him before about his passion for bizzaro rock, stoner doom and grunge but to chart how October has come to the point he's at currently we tapped him up to pick out the records that have been key to him throughout his career and have very much informed his debut long player.

Boytronic - Bryllynt (fast mix)

October: I remember hearing this on the radio in the Netherlands all the time in the late '80s... It’s quite apt to talk about your influential records here because clearly they are incredibly wide. Do you think that being exposed to this sort of music in your youth was most divisive in setting you on a path to make music? It must have left an imprint on my mind – it reminds me both of being young in Holland and of records with smiley faces on them. But it wasn’t until recently that I rediscovered it via a reissue from the excellent Dark Entries label, and I’ve been playing it at any opportunity since. Classic.

Armando - Don't Take It.

This hasn’t left my bag in at least 10 years, I should probably buy another copy. I’ve been getting a few more track IDs for it recently – maybe the empowering message is resonating with people a lot right now? Best house/acid track ever?

Front 242 - Take One

The one and only. When did you come into contact with Front 242 and their music? This track more than the previous choices feels like it informed the release’s aesthetic would you agree? I’ve been into them for years and they have that Euro sound that I grew up with, mainly due to my cousins who put on raves all over the Netherlands from around '89-92. I was far too young to go but the music that they would introduce me to was massively influential. In terms of production, Front 242 have influenced me hugely, and their style is a very big influence on my album, Black Body Radiation. Them and DAF.

Prince Far I - Plant Up

My favorite dancehall dub record of all time and best Toaster. Far-I and Dillinger no 1s. You can hear the influence of dub in your production on the record the delay and echoes you employ… Being from Bristol, I use a lot of dub production techniques in my music and am influenced by Jah Shaka, King Tubby etc. This record is a great source of inspiration for me. It was produced by Adrian Sherwood too.

Sun Ra - Angels and Demons at Play

This is it.

Patrick Cowley - Mocking Bird Dream

He has been an inspiration for years and it’s been overwhelming to be able to hear new music from my hero that I never knew was recorded. By this point it’s clear that there’s very little in the way of straight up techno that you’re drawing from – does this indicate that the sound simply isn’t so much at the forefront of the kind of you music you’re engaging with right now? There might not be much techno in this list but I find all his music equates to what the core of techno music essentially is. The way Patrick Cowley constructs his music and the space, energy and early use of synthesizers in disco... that to me, makes it sound like proto techno.

Lio - Sage Comme Une Image (lounge version)

A part of my youth! This was a big hit in Benelux and my cousin used to play it to me all the time.

Hard Corps - Je Suis Passee

My girlfriend got me onto this record. I've always loved Hard Corps but did know know about the French Version or the amazing raw dub. This was produced by Martin Rushnet who is also responsible for Human League's Dare era and the League Orchestra Unlimited.